Bystanders


We are merely bystanders
Watching with horror
From a distance
This cruel and insane invasion
By Putin and his hordes
His raping, murderous criminal army
Rampaging, plundering and pillaging like barbarians of old

We need not suffer any wounds
Or watch our babies and grandparents die
Our husbands, sons and daughters perish
Instead we can sit comfortably watching from a distance
Mere bystanders
We watch this war unfolding
Like some Hollywood horror movie
Playing out on our widescreen TVs
We munch on Pringles
And open another beer
Af if this were a hockey or football game
And we the spectators
While Putin is licking his bloody fingers
And sadistic lips
Mumbling happy obscenities
As his legions stumble, stab, bomb and maim
The young, the old and the innocent
Even as we try to switch channels
Clicking on our remote controls in vain
The war goes on
And on
And if we should ask for whom the bell tolls
It tolls for thee

Credit to John Donne, whose poem “For whom the bell tolls”
inspired the ending of this poem